Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Brasilian Post Punk '82-'88

As Mercenarias came to my attention earlier this year when several of their tracks appeared on a couple of cool compilations I had picked up - Nao Wave & The Sexual Life Of The Savages. Both featured Brasilian bands from the early to late '80s who took the post punk blueprint laid out by the Brits and Americans and added the flavor of Brazil - the language and the rhythms. As Mercenarias are an all girl group, playing punk-funk. Yes, they are still together after 25 years. Their music is tight, edgy, and danceable. It's everything that I could ask for in a post punk record. And their sounds fits in with today's scene very nicely. Soul Jazz records has released a compilation of the band's finest moments entitled Brasilian Post Punk 1982-88 - O Começo Do Fim Do Mundo. If you buy the vinyl you get a cool 7" of demos. The album kicks off with the springy, scratchy groove of Me Perco, and the later years are represented by the mellow-ish Lembranças with it's lovely guitars. Rumor has it that they will be touring Europe at the end of the year with a new lineup featuring two of the original girls plus a couple of new guys. Sounds like a pretty great show.